Coal India Limited (CIL) recorded its highest-ever monthly coal supplies of 70.3 million tonne (MT) in October, up 19% year-on-year, as dispatches to thermal power plants touched a record 57.1 MT amid rising electricity demand and efforts to strengthen coal stocks at power stations.
The miner reported a strong performance despite disruptions from unseasonal rainfall, Puja festivities and a cyclone. CIL also reported record railway rake loading for the power sector.
Monthly supplies crossed the 70-MT mark for the first time, surpassing the previous all-time high of 69.4 MT recorded in March 2026. The latest dispatches were substantially higher than the 59.2 MT supplied in October last year.
The achievement assumes significance as March is typically the peak performance month for coal production and dispatches, while October follows the monsoon period, when mining and transportation operations face weather-related challenges.
“What is more remarkable about these achievements is that the previous supply and railway rake records corresponding to the month of March, which happens to be the peak performance month of any fiscal, are being surpassed in October,” a senior CIL official said.
Coal supplies to the power sector also crossed the 57-MT mark for the first time, reaching 57.1 MT in October, compared with 48 MT in the corresponding month last year, registering a 19% increase.
The latest dispatches surpassed the previous monthly record of 56.5 MT achieved in May 2024, reflecting higher coal movement to thermal power plants.
The company also registered a new high in railway coal transportation, with average power-sector rake loading reaching 310 rakes per day during October. This exceeded the previous record of 302.8 rakes per day in March 2025, when the 300-rake threshold was last crossed.
CIL’s subsidiary Mahanadi Coalfields also crossed the 20-MT monthly supply mark for the first time, contributing to the company’s record overall dispatches.
